Introduction

Why did a ragtag coalition of incredibly selfish people with a hodgepodge poll plan to disintegrate the country and barely any cohesion amongst themselves fail in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections? In a democratic setup with a consolidated majority and an incumbent government making use of an election-winning machine, such a strategy should have died with the dinosaurs. Yet, this coalition managed to unite disparate parties with a shared goal only to crumble under its own instability.

The Coalition's Internal Flaws

The Mahagathbandhan coalition failed because it was not uniform throughout India. Every state had a coalition with a different style and different parties involved. There was no clear vision or purpose. The coalition never had a common leader to lead the group. Additionally, the coalition was never clear about how they proposed to govern in the event of victory. Many such parties claimed that the BJP was going to lose and they were going to form the government, but none contested more than forty seats except for the Congress party.

Leadership and Strategy

The main architects of this coalition, Yashwant Sinha and Arun Shetty, only referred to 69 members who voted against BJP. However, they failed to provide a clear strategy on how to consolidate this support. The parties could not reach amicable agreements on the distribution of seats, a common minimum program, and a leader to lead. The Mahagathbandhan itself seemed like a loose bond without direction.

Party Conflicts

Other parties that formed the coalition were often at loggerheads with each other. Many of these parties exist in politics due to the rivalry between them. The castes supporting these parties have always been warring with each other. For example, Yadavs hate Dalits in UP, Vokkaligas dislike the backward castes in Karnataka, Congress is hated in AP, and the Leftists and Congress could not come to an understanding with TMC in West Bengal. Due to these divisions, voters refused to trust the Mahagathbandhan and did not vote for common candidates.

Since the parties could not form a mega coalition, people were not prepared to trust the Mahagathbandhan. The state-specific coalitions reflected the opportunism of the parties. Since the parties and leaders became secretive and selfish, people began to doubt their intentions. They believed that after the election, these leaders would fight for ministries, portfolios, and leadership positions, leading to an unstable federation. People rejected them in totality, seeing no viable alternative to the BJP.

People came to realize that the coalition's sole purpose was to bring down BJP and defeat Modi, not to provide good governance. They were not interested in a coalition that was merely to loot the government and make illegal money. The shrill campaign of the opposition, centered around Modi, was marked by rabid hatred against him, which did not resonate well with the public. This made the coalition's efforts counterproductive.